The inventor of the present invention is also the inventor of U.S. Pat. No. 8,742,239 (“patent '239”). The present invention is a refinement and improvement to patent '239. For the sake of clarity, the background of patent '239 is repeated here, with appropriate corrections and additions.
Musicians who play stringed instruments, in particular guitars, use picks, also called plectrums. A pick is a small piece of thin plastic, metal, stone, bone, or other thin, rigid material, used to strum the strings of an instrument. Picks are usually, roughly speaking, triangular or teardrop in shape. The material, thickness, geometry, and tip of the pick affect the sonic characteristics of the instrument. For example, a really stiff, thick pick will have a very different sound from a thin, softer pick. The angle, depth, and direction of motion of the pick striking the strings is called the attack. The attack is individualized for each musician. Some musicians have quite an aggressive attack, striking the strings with a substantial portion of the pick, while using a locked thumb, putting quite a bit of force on the pick.
During extended playing, such as concerts, recording sessions or practices, stringed instrument musicians often find a need to use a new pick, for a variety of reasons. After playing for a while, a musician's hands may become sweaty or moist, making it more likely that the musician will drop or mishandle the pick. While rapidly strumming, many musicians lose their grip on their pick, and drop the pick. Additionally, due to the thin, brittle nature of picks, they tend to break during prolonged play, especially when used with an aggressive attack. Lastly, with extended play, the point of the pick can be rubbed away due to string friction. As the pick loses its point, it changes sonic characteristic and the attack on the string. Relatively speaking, thin and medium thickness picks tend to crack or break more than thicker ones.
Ideally, when a musician needs a new pick during a session, a pick should be available to the strumming hand of the musician, with no time lag. If the musician must stop to grab a pick, it can affect the quality of the concert or recording. Additionally, it can disrupt the group with whom the musician is practicing. An ideal pick holder would allow the musician to get a new pick with a quick, reliable movement, without interrupting playing. The solution should allow the musician to get a new pick a number of times. In other words, the pick holder should have capacity for a plurality of picks, and it should offer a way of rapidly grasping a single new pick.
Currently, when a musician needs a new pick during a session, they have a limited number of options. First, they can stop playing and get a new pick. Second, they can use their nails, instead of the pick. Third, they can use a deformed or partially broken pick, until they have a reasonable chance to replace the pick. Fourth, they can use one of the existing solutions for a pick holder. Fifth, they can use the invention described in patent '239.